Run to the Hills
by midvinternatten
Summary: SPN s7, 3rd "episode": Everything is broken. Dean is trying to man up and be a leader, while Sam is trying to help him cope without turning into stone. Just when they don't need it, evil comes with a new bag of tricks and rips open some old wounds.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey there,**

**This is the 3****rd**** "episode" in my little "season 7" of Supernatural.  
>The 1<strong>**st**** is **_**Piece of Heaven**_**.  
>The 2<strong>**nd**** is **_**Peace Out**_**.**

**And please, don't let the many chapters scare you off – they're really very short! ;oD**

**I have some ideas for more episodes in this "season" and I would love to know your thoughts about the storyline and the characters!**

**Thanks, and hope you enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Though it was a sunny day, the shrubs at the roadside seamed a shade of gray. Accompanied by Simon &amp; Garfunkel – Sound of Silence, Dean was driving, watching the road, thinking to himself. The road kept coming; all the little cracks in the asphalt, the winding never ending yellow line. He licked his lips and scratched his chin. In a blurry distance Sam was calling:<br>"Dean..? Dean!"

As Dean snapped out of it he heard Kiss – Shout It Out Loud blasting from the car stereo.

"What?" he gruffed and turned the music down. Jim was in the back seat.

"I said: 'I'm hungry!'" the boy repeated.

"Oh, okay buddy. We'll stop for lunch at the next town. See if there's any Twinkies left in the bag."

Jim started going through Alice's bag. Sam looked at Dean, then turned to Jim:  
>"You know what Jim? I'm really hungry too, but I don't think it's very far. What do you say we tough it out, you and me?"<p>

"Okay..." Jim pouted disappointed, but put the Twinkie back in the bag.

Dean wasn't even bothered that Sam had contradicted him. He turned the music up again and started singing along, pounding the beat on the dash board. Soon Jim sang along too.

Sam laughed at them and joined in for a moment, but then he went quiet, gazing over at his grieving brother. How was he supposed to help, when Dean was such a good faker?


	2. Chapter 2

The Impala parked in front of a diner. As the engine died, the chorus of Iron Maiden – Run to the Hills went quiet.

x

The boys all entered the diner. It was pretty busy, with lots of people having lunch in their booths. Jim ran off and found a vacant booth for them. The boy sat down, took a menu and held it up for Dean to help.

"Dad?"

Sam took the seat in front of Jim and started going through the menu. Dean forced a halfway smile, sat down next to his son and took the folded cardboard paper from his hands.

"Okay, let's see... We've got burgers – with or without eggs… Pasta...and something I can't pronounce, sea bass, salad if you're a GIRL..."

Sam looked up at Dean. Damn it, now he had to re-consider his order.

"...veggie soup, 'Chef's Surprise' – guess that's code for road kill…"

"I want pizza," Jim decided.

"They don't have it here, Jimbo."

Jim thought to himself while Dean looked over the menu again.

"Did they put mom in a coffin?"

Jim's question cut through the air. Sam put down his menu and Dean followed reluctantly, without meeting the child's eyes.

"Yeah," Dean responded firmly.

"And then they put the coffin in the ground?"

The boy was trying to wrap his head around it.

"That's right. So she'll find peace," said Dean.

"What if she gets cold? Or bored?"

Sam saw his brother squirming, wide eyed and halfway out of his seat, so he stepped in:  
>"Jimmy, she won't get cold or bored. That's just her body in the ground. Her soul is up in Heaven."<p>

"What if she gets bored in Heaven? What if she misses us?"

Dean jumped out of the booth.

"Nature call. Order for me, will you?"

Sam looked confused at the menu, then back up at his brother again. Dean was halfway through the diner, heading towards the bathroom.

"Well... What are you having, Dean..?"

Sam turned back at Jim. The boy was staring at him, waiting for answers to his questions. Sam faked a smile.


	3. Chapter 3

A flushing sound and Dean came out of the stall. He went and washed his hands, big mirrors covering the whole wall by the sinks. He sighed, grabbed the sink and angrily stared back at the deadbeat dad who couldn't fricking pull himself together enough to talk to a six-year-old. He was his father's son alright. A real Winchester.

x

He remembered John sitting at a bar, all quiet and locked inside himself, his gaze a hundred miles away. Next to him was Sam, about four years old, eating some fries. And next to Sam sat Dean, eight years old, staring over at his father, trying to be noticed. He finally gave up and watched his brother down the fries.

x

Dean squeezed his eyes shut and tilted his head back. When he felt tears coming he ran the tap again and splashed some water on his face.

He let the water flow between his two cupped hands. He lifted them up, keeping some of the water in, but most of it flowed down the sink… Like Alice's blood down the floor drain – the image hit him like a thunderbolt. He keeled down over the sink and had to grab on to it not to fall to the floor. He breathed heavily, and splashed more water on his face, trying to wash the memory away.

"Come on..!" he told himself.

"Are you having a moment?" he heard a taunting female voice behind him.

Dean jolted up. Behind him in the mirror he saw a demon wearing a young woman. She smirked and tilted her head super-human speed. Dean swallowed hard.

"I'm sorry, did you get turned around? This is the men's room, you un-holy bitch."

He slowly turned around to face her.

"Oh, my bad," she shrugged.

The demon spread her fingers and stabbed Dean in the stomach with an invisible force, leaving not a mark on him. He gasped and bent over in pain. She slammed him up against the wall, the mirror in a thousand pieces from the impact of his body. The demon twisted and turned the "knife".  
>Dean couldn't stop the memory flashbacks of stabbing Alice – is this how she felt when he killed her?<p>

The demon's voice was cheerful and perky:  
>"Not so much fun when <em>you're<em> the one being gutted, is it? Where's Sam?"

Dean couldn't get a word out because of the pain. She rolled her eyes and dropped him onto the floor, where he stayed coughing for a while.

"He's out in the car waiting for me," Dean lied.

The demon tilted her head and nodded.

"Which then makes him...anywhere but in the car. Good, good, making progress here."

Dean looked up at her. Oh, so that's how this was going to work?

"You'll never find him…" he bated.

"So he's here, but not in the diner," she deducted. "Thanks Dean, that wasn't so hard, was it?" She squatted down, leaning in close to his face. "Now. What about...your little boy?"

Dean couldn't hide the fear in his eyes. When she saw it her eyes widened.

"Ahhh..! _He_ is here, isn't he? What do you say we go 'talk' to him?"

"Why is every freak in the world suddenly after my kid?"

She stood up straight.

"'Freak'? Dean, Dean..! That's no way to talk to a lady. Didn't your mama…ohhh, right!"

Dean grinned at her faked empathy.

"Yeah, poor orphan little me. Guess the part about you being a 'lady' isn't really much of an issue here, though?" he smirked, and leaned against the wall when getting up. He staggered a couple of steps towards her. She smiled happily at his joke before using one hand to put her invisible knife through his shoulder, making him fly back again. Another mirror broke from him slamming up against it. Dean growled and made a face with pain. Then he laughed.

"KA-BLAM, thank you ma'm! Hit a nerve there, did I?"

"Yes. I care very deeply about how flannel-wearing meat feels about my virtue," the demon snarled.

She reached out her other hand, and Dean's eyes widened with panic as she slid her invisible knife up his leg and over his crotch. He wasn't very amused anymore.

"Listen, you stay the hell away from my son, you bi..."

"Really, the bitch-thing is getting old!" She was genuinely annoyed. "You need to get some new misogynous come-backs."

Dean was dropped to the floor again. He held his shoulder and tried to crawl up against the wall, away from her. The demon concentrated, and as power seared through her body, her eyes started glowing yellow.

The whole room turned a strange red light and everything was very quiet and muffled.

Dean could only hear his own breaths as he stared at the demon's yellow eyes. How..? No! In the corner of his eye something else caught his attention. He turned his head to look at the water taps. The drops were falling in slow motion.


	4. Chapter 4

In the diner Sam and Jim were eating their meals, and a burger was waiting for Dean. Suddenly everything turned a strange red light and all the sounds were muffled. Sam looked around. In the booth next to them a girl was laughing, tossing her head back and her hair flowed in slow motion. Sam turned to Jim, who stopped sucking on his coke and looked around. The boy was scared.

"Sam..?"

"Don't move. Just…stay very still, like everyone else," Sam instructed.

He turned around and looked in the direction Dean had gone.

x

In the customer bathroom the demon reached around Dean and the invisible force grabbed a hold of his spine. He wanted to scream with pain, but couldn't. He was jerked up off the floor and dangled with his toes an inch from the ground.

"The more you fight it, the more...fun I'm having. So feel free!" the young woman cheered. "Now, let's go find the little squirt, okay?"

x

The door to the men's room swung open when Dean's body was pressed against it. The demon drove him forward into the dining room. He could only move his face freely, the rest of his body paralyzed. Dean looked at all the people moving in slow motion. No one saw him and no one could help him. He looked over at their booth. Jim was sitting there all by himself. Dean tried looking around – where the hell was Sam?

Jim spotted them across the room and recognized his father was in trouble.

"Dad!" The boy jolted up from his seat, but then remembered he was supposed to stay put, so he sat back down.

"There he is! Hi, Jim!" the demon grinned happily and waved.

Sam jumped out from behind them. He was holding a paper cup high in his hands, and threw the content over them. Smoke rose from the demon's body and she growled in pain. Dean fell to the floor, released from her hold. Sam had another "grenade" ready in his hand.

The demon spun around to face her attacker and…let up a blood chilling, otherworldly scream when she saw him. Sam froze looking at her yellow eyes. Black smoke exited the possessed woman, who fell to the floor unconscious.

The red light disappeared, sound and speed returned to normal.

People around them gasped and whispered about Dean and the woman being on the floor. Sam lowered his "grenade".

"Daddy..!" Jim ran over to them, locking his arms around Dean's neck. Dean patted the boy's back, looking at the people staring at them.

"Okay... Come on buddy. Jimbo!" he tried. Jim sobbed uncontrollably and wouldn't let go. Two staff members came running over. The young woman woke up and freaked out.

"What..? Where am I? What's happening? Oh my God..!" she cried, and was picked up from the floor by the younger staff-guy. He led her away, trying to calm her down:  
>"It's all right, you're all right...eh, right?"<p>

"Are you okay, sir? What happened?" the older staff-guy asked Dean.

"Yeah... Uhm, slippery floor," Dean stuttered. "I think she...ran into me?"

Sam pitched in:  
>"Yes, she ran right into him. Poor thing seamed kind of confused. Maybe you should call someone for her, make sure she gets home okay?"<p>

"Yes, of course. Very sorry, sir!"

The staff-guy looked at them funny, but left and went back to his duties. Sam helped Dean up, Jim still firmly planted around his neck. Dean carried him over to their booth.

x

They sat down at their table again.

"Hey. Buddy. Come on now, let up." Dean tapped Jim's shoulder. Sam scowled his brother – the boy needed comfort! Jim let go of his dad's neck, but remained in his lap and tried to swallow his cry.

"There, all better. Here you go," said Dean, reached over and grabbed Jim's coke for him. The boy took it but didn't drink. He leaned up against Dean's chest, the last sobbing jerks echoing out of his body.

Sam was trying to organize his thoughts:  
>"That… She had yellow eyes..!" he said and stared intensely at Dean.<p>

"I noticed." Dean picked up his burger and dug into it.

"_Yellow_, Dean!" Sam waited for a reaction. Of any kind. He got a quick, warning look from his brother, who continued eating the burger. Sam sighed and leaned back in his seat. They obviously weren't going to talk about it.

"Seriously, you're hungry?" he asked, defeated. Dean frowned at the remark.

"Well, yeah! I just had a chiropractor session from Hell, need my strength. What was in those molotovs, MacGyver?"

"Table salt and water…" Sam muttered and picked up the saltshaker on their table. "I thought it would at least sting like a..." He looked at Jim and censored himself. "And I guess it did..."

"Hey, how come you two could move?" Dean asked.

"I don't know, Dean. And that thing was scared of me. Why?" Sam leaned forward again. Dean stopped chewing and looked up at his little brother.

"'Cos ya _moved_?" he said with a full mouth. "I'm more curious about the time stopping – that was new. We should ask Bobby about that."

"Dean, how can you be so jaded about this? We just got hit by a _yellow_-eyed demon…"

Dean bit into his burger again.

"…who literary crawled out of her skin when she saw me."

"What, you think I know..?" Dean shrugged annoyed. Sam squirmed, trying to hold back his anxiety.

"Dude… When scary thing think _I'm_ scary, I don't like not knowing why!"

Sam tilted his head, looking pleading at his brother. He just wanted him to care. Just a little bit. Dean swallowed his bite and put his burger down. He was angry.

"You wanna know what I don't like, Sam? Me coming out here, finding my son left alone! That bothers me a little, you know!"

"I was trying to help _you_..! I heard you coming out of the bathroom and I..."

"Yeah well, guess what? Next time there's something gunning after us, and you're the only one who can move – you pick him up and run as fast as you can, don't look back!" Dean stared his brother down. "You hear me?"

Sam knew that look, he had seen it all his life. This was not a debate.

"I hear you..." he replied softly. Dean took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"Want some burger?" he asked his son, who was still leaning up against his chest. Jim shook his head no and Dean continued eating.

After a couple of bites he put the burger down and held out his hand in front of him – it was shaking. He formed a fist and slammed it in the table, trying to beat it steady. Then he went back to working on the burger.


	5. Chapter 5

The last rays of the sun gleamed on the hood of the Impala, where she was parked outside a motel. Sam took out his bag and went over to their room. Dean closed the trunk of the car and followed Sam, carrying both his and Jim's bags, the boy slouching after them.

x

They entered their motel room. Sam paused for a beat. Jim was very quiet and mellow, looking down on the floor.

"How you doing Jimmy?" Sam asked.

"Fine..." the boy mumbled.

"Back at the diner..." Sam queried. "Were you scared something would happen to your dad?"

Jim just looked up at him with big, sad eyes.

Dean took a few steps in their direction, correcting the topic:  
>"Hey! Nothing's happening to nobody. We're all here and we're all fine. Right, Jimbo?"<p>

Jim sighed and nodded obediently. Sam glared at Dean and shook his head, but decided not to fight him on this here and now.

x

Only a couple of streetlamps a yard away lit up the parking lot. Sam came out of their motel room, dialing on his cell phone.

x

Inside the motel room, Dean was sitting on his bed watching tv. When he turned his head, Jim was sitting on the other bed, watching him.

"You need something?" It sounded more hostile than he had intended.

"Where's Sam?" the boy asked.

"He's calling Bobby."

Dean continued watching the tv-screen, but he felt Jim's eyes still on him. Finally he turned the tv off and scratched his head, avoiding eye contact.

"So, uhm... You wanna learn some sparring?"

Jim tilted his head, he didn't know that word.

"I'll teach you how to fight," Dean explained. "So you'll be tough like me and uncle Sammy. Well, hopefully more like me, but..." He chuckled to himself.

His son smiled and nodded. Dean took his bed pillow and went down on two knees to match Jim's height. He held out the pillow in front of him for a punching bag.

"All right... Now, first of all: Balance."

x

Bobby poured himself a little Hunter's Helper and put the bottle down on his desk.

"So, yellow eyes, huh?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded into his cell phone, then paused for a beat. "Hey Bobby, you don't... I mean, this can't be the same demon that got mom and Jess?"

"Not the same _one_, 'cos you Winchesters killed him good and proper. Could be something ranking just as highly, though. Don't know yet." Bobby took a sip of the golden beverage and let it burn down his gullet. "What I don't get – in a long, colorful line of random strangeness here – is the time stopping. That's almost unheard of, takes some serious mojo."

"Okay, so somebody should know something, right? And Bobby..." Sam looked back at their room, making sure nobody was eavesdropping. "This thing was coming after Jim. Again! It's like they have the kid lo-jacked or something. At first I thought they were just screwing with Dean, but now it's like they're on a mission!"

Bobby tilted the phone away from his mouth as he took a deep breath, staring up in the sealing.

"Seams like. We'll figure it out, son. Just keep moving and keep laying out those salt lines."

Sam nodded. What else could they do at this point?

"How's Dean doing with...everything?" Bobby asked.

Sam shrugged and shook his head. He wasn't sure what to tell Bobby or where to start.

x

Dean held out the pillow and Jim was punching it with all his might. They had been at it for some time, Jim looked tired and warm, but Dean kept coaching:  
>"Come on, keep it coming! Lean in on your punches. Shoulders first, arms are extensions of the shoulders."<p>

Jim stopped, took a step back and stood there panting. This wasn't fun anymore. Dean scowled the quitter.

"Come on, come on! The monster ain't gonna stop coming at you just because you're tired. Let's go!"

Jim was exhausted and annoyed, so instead of trying to use Dean's technique, he simply charged the pillow, fists in the air. Dean saw him coming and took a firm grip of the pillow. When Jim hurled himself at it, it didn't budge, and Jim bounced back and fell to the floor.

"Ouch..!" the boy complained.

Dean locked eyes with his son, who stayed sitting on the floor, holding his arm.

"Whatta hell was that?"

"I don't wanna...'spar'," Jim announced.

"Oh, you don't wanna, huh? Just like that? Let me tell you something: You don't stop fighting. Ever!" Dean couldn't hold himself back. "I'm gonna teach you every damn trick in the book, and you're gonna learn. It'll save your life one day. So you get up, and you don't stop! Now let's go!"

The boy was just sitting there, holding his arm, looking up at Dean with big, teary eyes. Dean was welling up too, but fought it. He held out the pillow and shook it, his voice cracking:  
>"Come on!"<p>

The door opened and Sam entered. Jim got up, and ran to hug Sam's legs.

"What's going on here?" Sam asked. His older brother looked away and hung his head.

"We're just... Sparring."

Dean got up from the floor and put the pillow back on the bed.

"Sparring or menacing? Dean, he's six!" Sam was furious.

"Look, he's completely unprepared. And there are things out there that..." When Dean met Sam's eyes he stopped trying to justify himself. "Did Bobby have anything?" he demanded, changing the subject. Sam clinched his jaws.

"How about we talk outside?" he suggested. "Let's go for a little walk or something. It won't take long."

"Great, so who's looking after Jim?"

"We'll just be a block away, Dean." Sam's expression softened when he turned to Jim: "All right? You can watch tv and we'll be right back. We'll be just a minute."


	6. Chapter 6

Dean poured a thick layer of salt in front of the door. Sam salted the windows, and closed the curtains. Jim was sitting on one of the beds in front of the tv. Dean came up to him, an apology all over his face. Jim pouted in silence and avoided meeting his dad's eyes.

Dean nodded to himself, he deserved the silent treatment. Instead he looked around the room. How was he going to explain the severity of this to the boy?

"Okay, here's the deal," he began in an authoritive voice. "This salt that we've put here... It's mine, okay? You do not, under any circumstances, touch it. Or play with it, or... Whatever else you might think to do with it – don't. It's mine and it stays put. And so do you! No venturing outside, no... Just stay within the salt, in this room. You got it?"

"I think he's got it, Dean," Sam sighed over by the door.

Dean went over to the front door. He turned and looked back at Jim, trying to think of something nice to say. He gave up, but thought of some more orders to bark:  
>"Oh, and this door...remains closed. Come over here and put the chain on after we leave."<p>

Jim came over but still wouldn't make eye contact with Dean.

"It's okay, Jimmy. See you in a bit," said Sam and put a hand on Jim's shoulder.

The Winchesters walked outside and stayed listening to Jim securing the door before they left.

x

The alley was dark and secluded, just a couple of banged up trash cans bore witness to recent human activity. Sam was struggling to keep his cool, Dean was anxious, wanting to get back to his son.

"All right, so what's so bad we can't talk about it in front of Jim?" Dean asked.

"_You_ are, Dean!" the reply cut through the air.

"Wh... Are you freaking kidding me?" Dean pushed back. "You drag me out here just to give me your Dr Phil bitch-act? Now?"

"Yeah! I figured I'd at least give you a chance before calling Social Service on your ass," Sam shouted. "You are doing 'Sergeant Dad' – times ten. And I don't know if you've noticed, but it's not working! You're scaring him!"

"Well, gee Sam, you think maybe he _should_ be scared? There are…THINGS coming for him! All the time, there's just no end to it… So he's gotta learn. Fast!"

"Dean..! Look I'm telling you, this 'hoorah, walk it off' crap you and dad always pulled – it never worked on me. And Jim grew up with Alice and play-dates and the family dog. He's not like you!"

"Oh, but he's just like you, huh? God I hope you're wrong about _that_..."

"He's _normal_! He's a normal kid, who just lost his mom. And his dad would rather...beat him with a pillow, than talk to him!"


	7. Chapter 7

Jim lay on his stomach on one of the beds flicking through the channels. There was nothing good on.

x

The street lamp flickered. Someone or something moved super-speed over the parking lot, arriving at the boy's motel room. It peeked in through the curtains and watched Jim where he lay flicking the remote. The bathroom door was open, nobody there. No one in the kitchen area either…

x

On one of the channels, Jim found a boring weather report, saying there was a storm coming. He gave up, turned the tv off and put the remote control beside him on the bed. He curled up on his side and sighed. The wallpaper had blue flowers on it. The pattern annoyed him. He sighed again.

The tv came back on! Jim gasped and sat straight up in bed. He picked up the remote and tried to shut the tv off. It didn't work.

Hesitantly he put his feet over the edge of the bed, then got up and stood on the floor. The news were doing a close-up of the anchorman. Slowly Jim went closer and closer to the tv. When he was within reach he bowed down to turn the tv off, staring at the screen as he went down. The picture froze and the tv-sound muted. Jim stopped and stared wide-eyed at the screen. He felt drawn in – hypnotized by the anchorman's eyes, staring right into the camera.

Jim leaned in closer to really look at those eyes... They blinked! The tv-sound returned, higher than before. Jim flinched and quickly turned the tv off.

He backed away. When there was enough distance between him and the tv, he turned his back to it and started walking towards the kitchen area. The boy was petrified, he squeezed his eyes shut a couple of times and tried a couple of deep breaths.

The tv came back on! Jim spun around and stared. This time there was only statics. Suddenly a loud, creepy dark voice came from the tv:  
>"Jiiimmyyy..!"<p>

Jim screamed and bolted to the front door, squeezing up against it. The tv turned off... The child stood frozen, afraid to move, short shallow breaths of fear.

A knocking on the door! Jim jerked away, back into the room. Then he swung around, looking at the tv, then back at the door. There was another knock on the door.

Jim swallowed hard and went up to the door, keeping an eye at the tv behind him. Slowly he turned the nob and opened the door, as far as the chain would allow. Outside a nice lady in her late 30's was squatting down to match his height. Her face was imposingly close in the door crack, but she smiled kindly and spoke gently:  
>"Well hi there! Is your daddy home?"<p>

Jim shook his head "no".

"Awww, you're not all alone in there, are you?"

Jim nodded "yes" and almost started crying. He swallowed hard again.

"They left you here? Oh, honey... Take the chain off, open the door," she instructed.

Jim obeyed and opened the door widely, though halfway hiding behind it. He knew he wasn't supposed to talk to anyone. The lady looked at him with empathy.

"Well, they can't just leave you here. Come with me, honey. Come outside."

The lady reached out her arms. Jim hid his face in the door and cried.

"I'm not supposed to..." he sobbed.

"But you're all alone, they left you!" she protested. "Why don't you come out here and let me hold you, let's wipe those tears, what do you say?"

Jim sank down on the floor, still clutching the door and cried hysterically.

"I can't..!"

The lady peeked at him with cold eyes, then looked at the salt line by the door and decided to change the subject.

"Well now, this is a big mess!" she smiled, pointing to the salt. "Why don't you clean up the salt for me?"

Jim dried his tears and looked up at her from the door.

"Dad told me not to touch it."

"Why?" she shook her head. Jim shrugged.

"I dunno..."

The lady paused for a beat.

"Well then... I'm just gonna go now," she said and stood up from the ground. Jim got up too.

"No..!" he pleaded.

"You're not being a very good boy, Jim," she shook her head disapproving. "I asked you to come outside – you won't. I asked you to clean up the salt – you said 'no'. So I guess there's nothing more for me to do than to leave you here. All alone."

She shrugged with a sad face and turned away to leave. Jim anxiously took a step closer to the entrance.

"Please, wait..!" he protested. Then he stopped. "How did you know my name?"

The lady's eyes glowed yellow. She spun around and threw herself at the doorpost, leaning down close to Jim. He jerked, stumbled backwards into the room and fell to the floor with a yelp. Her voice was no longer sweet:  
>"You're not <em>supposed<em> to open the door either, are you Jimmy?" She sniggered and slowly shook her head at the disobedient child. "You…opened…the door for me..! Your dad is gonna be _so_ mad at you. He's gonna beat you until there's not one inch of your body that doesn't hurt."

Jim cried hysterically on the floor, shaking his head "no".

"Do you think he _likes_ having you here, or in his car?" she bombarded. "Driving around all day, with you and your stupid, annoying questions? Do you think he likes _you_, Jimmy? He's gonna beat you, and then he's gonna lock you in his trunk, and never let you out ever again. You've been very, very bad, Jim!"

She couldn't hold back an evil smirk as she witnessed his pain. Jim lay crouching in fetal position on the floor, holding his head, hyperventilating. The demon let back her human eyes, and spoke in a stern mother's voice:  
>"Now, you clean up this salt, Jimmy. Right now!"<p> 


	8. Chapter 8

In the alley Dean scratched at his chin, trying to regain his cool.

"Look, is any of this at any point going to lead to what Bobby had to say about the time stopping?"

"He didn't have anything yet. Dean, I'm trying to..."

"Well then, you can go straight back to Hell, Sam!" Dean yelled at his brother and started marching back. "You were really less annoying without a soul."

Sam just stood there staring after him. It hurt. Sam squeezed his eyes shut and squirmed to get rid of his brother's words echoing in his head. He looked around, trying to find something to focus on enough to hold the tears back. There were just cold, dark brick walls around him.

He picked up one of the trashcans and hurled it into the opposite wall. It was louder than he had anticipated and it felt good. He picked up another trash can and went over there and started beating on the one already lying on the ground. When one of the handles broke he stopped and threw the trashcan on the ground. A dog was barking in a distance. He looked around, wiped little pearls of sweat from his forehead, and stood there panting for awhile.

He leaned up against the brick wall, cursing himself for the way he let things go down with Dean. A big, deep breath, and then he started slouching back to their motel.

x

Jim remained on the floor, sobbing. The lady-demon was squatting down by the door, observing him curiously.

"You can come stay with me, Jim. I'll take care of you," she said in a calm voice.

He gazed over at her, distrusting, but she nodded sincerely.

"I will. But if you don't come out here, I'm gonna go kill your daddy."

"No!" Jim stood up from the floor. The lady stood up too and nodded slowly.

"Yes... And then, I'm gonna kill Sam too." She tilted her head and looked at him with sad eyes. "And you're gonna be all alone in here. And you're gonna cry, and cry, and cry, but no one's gonna come for you. And you're gonna die in here, Jimmy. All alone..."

Jim didn't know what to do with himself. He put his hands on his head and paced a little back and forth by the door. The demon made an empathetic face and reached out a hand for Jim to take. Jim slowly started walking towards the door. She nodded as to say: "It's okay. You know it has to be this way."


	9. Chapter 9

Dean could see the parking lot of their motel now. He looked down and shook his head at himself. Maybe he should just get out of everyone's way and let Sam take care of the kid? He obviously was in no shape to do it, he agreed on that.

As he stepped onto the parking lot he looked up at their room. The door was open and Jim was slowly walking towards some woman standing outside. Dean's heart stopped, but his body started running.

"Hey! Jim, back inside!" he shouted.

Jim looked up at him and ran back in the room. The lady just stood there and sighed defeated. She turned around and used an invisible force to throw Dean into the motel building, knocking over some trashcans and loose boards when he landed. Jim heard the noise and peeked outside.

"Dad! No..!"

"I told you, Jim. This is all your fault!" she yelled and tossed Dean around some more in front of the terrified child. When Dean finally hit the ground, he crawled up on all four, spitting blood.

"Back inside! Now! Close the door!" he ordered and Jim quickly obeyed.

"Oh, you shouldn't have done that..!" the demon said in a venomous voice.

She kicked in the air and Dean was thrown up against the building. The lady used both hands to stab him through his shoulders with her invisible knives, pinning him up against the wall.

Dean growled, but then smiled at her with bloody teeth.

"I'm supposed to believe this is funny to you?" she asked.

"Ah baby, I'm all kinds of weird!" he said looking straight at her, like this was the best kink he had gotten in years. The lady looked at him and smiled a little.

"You met my sister earlier..." she said in a calm voice.

"Sister..?"

"Yes. She talks too much," the demon nodded. "Me, I'm all about the _pain_…"

She took one "knife" out of his shoulder and started stabbing him with short jerks, from his belly and up over his chest, gutting him like a fish. Dean couldn't breathe and felt he was going to pass out from the pain.

"Stop that." Sam voice was calm and demanding. He had snuck up and was standing not two inches behind her. She spun around and stared at him, dropping Dean down to the ground.

"And DON'T...run," Sam added. He moved forward, forcing her to walk backwards, until he finally slammed her into the motel wall. He put his hands on both sides of her head, invading her space, staring her down. He was calm and powerful, taking his good old time with her.  
>Dean just looked at his brother. Whatta hell? Dean got up, spit out some blood and went to stand behind Sam.<p>

"Now... What's your name?" Sam asked.

The demon looked to the side to think something up.

"Nuh-uhuh..! You don't want me to think you're lying," Sam warned her, shaking his finger close to her face.

"Urd," the demon confessed, staring petrified at him.

Sam looked at her mistrusting and watched her panic.

"I'm Urd!"

"And you have a sister. What's her name?" he calmly asked.

"Verdandi."

"And...your business with Jim?"

The lady-demon hesitated, so Sam corrected a lock of her hair. She was disgusted by his touch.

"There's a prophesy..." she began.

"M-hm..?" Sam invaded her space an inch further. It rattled her.

"He's supposed to clean out Hell, okay!" the demon shouted. Sam smirked and started smelling her hair.

"Is he now..?"

She squeezed her eyes shut and continued.

"When he grows up. He... His powers work different than yours."

Sam grunted a little. He was only "kind of" listening to her. Dean started looking a little queasy.

"And when you say Jim is going to 'clean out Hell', you mean he is going to just…stroll right in there, and..?" Sam hunched down to gaze straight into her eyes.

"And...take...take us out... Look, all I know is…there's supposed to be this blinding light."

"Hey! Are you and your sister the ones who sent that...Night-demon after us?" Dean asked. The lady rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Ughhh... She was just supposed to do recon... Creative bitch..!"

They lost Alice to a foot soldier. Dean clinched his jaws, looked down and shook his head.  
>Sam quickly glanced over at Dean. They were done here, right? He moved in close, towering over the lady-demon and smirked.<p>

"Now...Urd," Sam whispered. "Am I gonna have to _do_ it, or are you gonna to hold still, like a good little demon?"

She stared at him confused, but then bent her head in obedience. Sam started citing the demon-expelling verse in Latin and she began coughing black smoke. She looked up at him, in pain, but yet surprised. Then she caught on!

With demon-strength she pushed Sam hard in the chest, away from her. He flew 20 feet over the parking lot.

"Sam!" Dean reacted.

"You don't know yet!" she grinned and glowed with her yellow eyes. Sam quickly got on his feet. She "stabbed" both the Winchesters through their chest, hurling them up against the motel wall. They screamed from the pain and dangled a couple of feet off the ground.

"Got any more bright ideas?" Dean asked.

"Nope. That's it!"

Jim had heard their screams and jolted out of their room. He started punching the demon's legs the way Dean had taught him to spar. Dean saw it happen and heard himself yelling:  
>"Nooo! Jimmy no!"<p> 


	10. Chapter 10

Jim kept swinging, though he heard his uncle calling:  
>"Jimmyyy! Go back inside, go back!"<p>

The demon smiled. She dropped the Winchesters to the ground, holding them both down with just one hand. With her other hand she lifted up Jim by his clothes. He screamed and tried to kick her.

"Well hi there, fishy!" she said.

Suddenly something shook through Dean's body. Sam watched him in horror. As soon as the tremors were gone, Michael rose from the demon's hold. Sam was still pinned down, trying to get up. Michael walked up to the lady, who just stared at him, shaking her head.

"How did you... No, but you..! No!" she gasped.

Michael put his hand to her forehead and burned out the demon, heavenly fire bursting through the poor human's eyes. The lady fell lifeless to the ground, and Michael caught Jim as she fell. Believing it was his dad, Jim put his arms around Dean's neck. Michael looked a little stomped, but patted the boy's back before setting him down on the ground.

"Go to Sam," the angel ordered. Jim backed away a few steps and looked up at Dean. Michael looked back, curiously. Jim ran over to Sam, who got up and caught the boy, lifting him up in his arms. Michael scowled Sam for a beat and Sam just stared back at him, not moving a muscle.

Michael turned to the lady, still lying lifeless on the ground. He moved his hand over her body, incinerating it into ashes. He then went down to his knees, closed his eyes and fell to the ground. Dean awoke and sat up.

"Wo..."

"How you feeling?" Sam asked.

"Like an archangels boy-toy…"

"She seemed surprised about that. Guess they don't know," Sam reasoned.

"Yeah. We got dumb lucky."

Dean went over to Sam and reached out for his son. Sam handed him over without hesitation, but Dean proceeded to grab Jim by the shoulders:  
>"Jim! Where is the salt line?"<p>

Jim looked to the salt line by the door, shocked and confused.

"That's right! Over there. So whatta hell are you doing out here? I told you..!"

"Dean! For God's sake!" Sam shouted.

Dean let go of Jim, who shot back into the room, making sure to stand behind the salt line while his dad and uncle were fighting.

"No Sam, you stay out of this!" Dean exploded. "You and your freaking 'it's all good' attitude are gonna get my son killed! He needs to understand the meaning of a direct order! And so do you!"

"What..? _You_ are gonna get him killed, Dean! You! By not making him trust you enough to follow your damn orders! Think about it, Dean – why did you always do everything dad said, huh?

"Because he was right! Because when you don't follow orders bad stuff happen!"

"No! Because you knew he loved you, and you _trusted_ him. If you even have any feelings for this kid, you sure aren't letting on! He's never going to trust you, and he's never going to listen to you. _You_ will get him killed!"

"I want mommy..!" the boy cried.

The Winchesters stopped and looked over at Jim. He was standing behind the salt line crying his eyes out. Dean stumbled a few steps backwards, staring at his son. Dean squeezed his eyes shut and a tear fell out. He turned away and took two steps towards the Impala.

"Where the hell are you going now..?" he heard Sam's annoyed voice.

"Away…" Dean mumbled. "Out, I...gotta have a beer…"

Jim watched his guardian turn around and leave. He wanted to run up to him, but he looked back and forth at the salt line he knew he wasn't allowed to cross. All he could do was plead with the man:  
>"Dad... Please, can I come too?"<p>

The words hit Dean right in the gut. He stopped and had to gather himself before turning around and facing the boy.

"Uhm..." He tried to not tremble in his voice. "This is 'dad-time', okay buddy? Sam is here, you'll be fine."

Sam scowled him and shook his head, then went to pick up Jim. The boy cried in Sam's arms, watching his father walk over to the Impala and take off.


	11. Chapter 11

To the tones of Lynyrd Skynyrd – Simple Man you could follow the Winchester's activities during the rest of the night.

x

Dean walked in, and down the stairs to the bar. It was dark and sleazy, a few drunks sitting here and there, hanging their heads.

Dean went to sit by the counter and ordered a whiskey.

x

A few glasses later Dean was hunching over the counter, no longer concerned who might see the misfortune in his eyes.

Ms Cougar came and stood next to him. She was once the prettiest girl in her class, now she was on the prowl, sizing Dean up.

"That bad, huh?" she asked and tried a flirty smile. Dean turned and looked at her with a vacant expression.

"You wanna make it better?" he asked. Ms Cougar smiled sexy and Dean chucked down the rest of his whiskey, then put the glass down on the counter as to brace himself. He got up, put his arm around her and they left the bar together.

x

Dean and Ms Cougar stumbled through the door of a rundown motel room. She smiled, pulled her top off and threw it at him. Dean caught it, but just put it on a nearby chair before taking his jacket off. He closed his eyes and kissed her deep, letting her tear off his shirt and start in on the jeans.

x

Jim had his pajamas on and was brushing his teeth, sitting on Sam's lap. Sam was trying to explain things the demon had said. He looked frustrated and ran his fingers through his hair, trying to say the right things to the boy.

x

Dean was on top of Ms Cougar, closing his eyes, keeping his face turned away from her while the cover moved rhythmically. She, on the other hand, leaned her head back and dug her fingernails into his back.

x

Jim was tucked in and Sam lay next to him, reading a bedtime story.

x

Afterwards Dean was lying close, spooning Ms Cougar. Her eyes were closed, she smiled content and stroke his arm as he was holding her. Dean's thoughts were miles away, but he cuddled up to the one he could feel in his arms.

x

Sam closed the book. Jim was already asleep. Sam got up from the bed and turned the bed light off. He went into the kitchen and angrily slapped an empty milk carton off the counter. He spun around to check he didn't wake Jim. The boy remained asleep and Sam picked the milk carton up from the floor.

x

Ms Cougar was asleep on the bed. Dean was dressed and finished putting his jacket on. He looked over at her one last time, then left.

x

Dean snuck into the boy's motel room, his steps still wobbly from alcohol. Jim and Sam were in the two only beds. Sam's eyes opened, but he didn't turn around to show Dean he was still awake.

Dean sat down on Jim's bed and watched his son sleep, then he leaned over and kissed his forehead. He rolled up his jacket for a pillow and lay down on the floor to sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

Dean opened his eyes. He was lying on Lars' floor, right by the devil's trap and the floor drain. He got up and turned around. Everything was as in a slight white fog.

In the nasty motel room he saw himself making sweet, passionate love to Ms Cougar. He took a few steps over there. WTF?

Behind him he heard the sniffing and growling of hellhounds. He froze with fear and slowly turned around. They were right outside Lars' garage door…and they started banging on the door, trying to get in! Dean frantically went through the crap in Lars' garage, looking for salt. He gave up, turned to the stairway and ran up.

x

He came out the stairs, where Lars' 2nd floor should be, but instead it was the nasty motel room again. The bed was now empty.

A growl right behind him! One of the dogs was already there..! He flinched, backed away and fell onto a table. The hellhound grabbed his legs and pulled him off the table, on to the floor. It started biting into his legs...

...but the screams he heard were that of a woman. It was Alice's legs! She was lying on Lars' floor, by the floor drain, and the hellhound was ripping her apart. She screamed and turned to look at the attacker at her side. It was Dean! He stared at her, shocked, with demon-black eyes and blood around his mouth.

"I'm sorry..! I'm so sorry!" he cried, but he couldn't control it. He started tearing into her flesh again. "SAAAM?" he yelled at the top of his lunges. He looked up and there was Sam, wearing a white suit, as Lucifer once did. Sam too had demon-black eyes and was calmly looking down on him.

"Good dog!" Sam smiled.

x

Dean had normal eyes again. He was standing ten feet away from Alice, watching her blood flow down the floor drain. She wasn't torn by dogs, but looked like the night he killed her. She turned her head and looked at him with blame. Her mouth was closed, but he heard her dying gasps the way they sounded that night. He looked down and he was holding the knife again.

He turned around and Jim was standing in the doorway just outside the boys' motel room. Jim hung his head down, like when Night had possessed him. He looked up, but this time it really was Jim. He looked angrily at Dean. Dean started running to the door, but it slammed shut as he reached it. He tried banging on it a few times, calling for his son:  
>"Jimmy! Jim, please... Please, can I come too?"<p>

Dean slid down to the floor, crying.

Sam came over to him, wearing his normal clothes. He looked devastated and crouched down in front of him. Dean looked up at him, confused and pleading.

"Dean..! What did you do..?" Sam asked with disgust.

Dean looked down, he was holding a pillow. When he lifted the pillow, Jim was lying under it – suffocated and lifeless.


	13. Chapter 13

Dean jerked and woke up. Sam sat by the window, working on his laptop.

"Where's Jim?" Dean asked.

"Outside playing," Sam answered and peeked out the window.

Outside Jim was playing soccer with a baseball.

The room lay dark, except for the sunlight that came in through the half-closed blinds. Dean's head was throbbing and he was pretty sure something had crawled up and crapped in his mouth. He pushed himself up from the floor. It was an effort.

"Dean…" Sam began, closing his computer.

"Oh God, we're gonna have another 'talk', aren't we?"

Dean went to the fridge and took out a beer. He popped it, and took a sip before doing a little morning stretch. He went and stood opposite Sam by the table. Sam looked at the beer, and restrained a sigh. Dean obviously didn't need more alcohol, but he didn't want to start their conversation like that.

"All right honey. I'm sorry I came home late last night," Dean snarled before sitting down at the table. "It was just...kind of intense, you know?" he mumbled and had another sip.

"So you left?" Sam asked, but stopped himself from attacking any further. "Look man, I get it. I do," he tried in a soft voice. "It's just... Jim was scared out of his mind, Dean. And I had to be the one to tell him everything was gonna be all right, and tuck him in, and read bedtime stories, and…"

He got a sharp look from his brother.

"Bedtime stories, huh? Awww I'm sorry. I promise _that_ will never happen again!"

"Dean…"

"What? 'Thank you'?"

Sam made a peace offering gesture. He wasn't going to fight this time.

"I miss Alice too," he said, but got a warning look from his brother.

"Don't go there Sam..!" Dean took another sip of beer and looked out the window.

"I know – it's too much! And…it's history repeating itself. The Winchester curse." Sam tilted his head and looked at his brother. "But the thing is… Your son needs you, Dean. Now. Not after some time, when you're feeling up to it. _Now_."

Dean flew out of his chair and started pacing a little back and forth.

"Well, what if he starts asking me questions I can't answer. Huh, Sam?" Dean asked. "What if he wants…details. Like 'How did mom die? Was she shot? Or stabbed?'" Dean paused to mimic a child's innocent eyes: "Who stabbed her, daddy?"

Sam got up from his chair and walked over to Dean.

"You stabbed a _demon_. Who was gonna take Jim."

Dean frowned at Sam, his voice almost unrecognizable with hate:  
>"I stuck the knife in her body and I yanked it around until I felt her flesh tare!"<p>

Sam put a hand on Dean's shoulder and looked him in the eyes.

"Man… Don't take it away from her... She knew exactly what was gonna happen when she ripped the amulet off."

The right hook to Sam's chin came out of nowhere. He staggered back a couple of steps and found a wall to lean up against. Dean came after him with another couple of blows, knocking his brother to the ground. Sam stayed on the floor, looking up at Dean in surprise. Dean stood over him still making a fist. He was furious.

"I told you to take the knife, Sam! I _begged_ you to kill _me_!" Dean yelled.

"I'm sorry, Dean! I couldn't do it..! Look, I know it's my fault, and I made you... I know that! And I'm so sorry!" Sam cried.

"She was..." Dean closed his eyes, trying to form the words to describe it all. "She was supposed to be here. I was gonna keep her safe! And she's all that kid's ever known. Now he's stuck here with me! And I…I can't..!"

Sam nodded and looked away.

"I couldn't kill you, Dean. But I could have ripped off my own amulet. That's what I should have done, I just… I didn't think!"

Dean looked annoyed.

"No, _you're_ not his dad. It was supposed to be _me_. I asked you to kill _me_, Sam!"

"If I had just..." The words stuck in Sam's throat. "Jim would still have both his parents, and you and Alice, you would..."

Dean kneeled down in front of his brother. He put his hands around Sam's face to look him in the eyes.

"Sammy, _no!_"

Dean leaned his forehead against Sam's, while the younger brother sobbed:  
>"I'm sorry, Dean… I'm so sorry..!"<p>

"I don't know what to do here, Sam." Dean whispered. "I don't know what to do..!"

Sam calmed down a little and looked up at him.

"Yeah, you do. You always have."

Dean looked at his brother. Sam tried a little smile and Dean followed the gesture.

"How's your chin?"

"Good thing you hit like a girl." Sam dried off his tears.

"Yeah? You want another one?"

"No!"

They sat on the floor in silence. Dean squirmed.

"Are you gonna need a hug?"

Sam sighed and pulled himself up from the floor.

"Jerk..."

"Bitch!" came the reply readily as Dean got up too.

Outside the window Jim was still playing soccer with the baseball. The brothers watched him for a beat.

"You're right, he _is_ going to have questions," Sam acknowledged.

"What the hell am I gonna tell him, Sammy?" Dean shook his head.

"You tell him his mom loved him very much and tried to protect him. And that you got the thing that killed her. Don't forget that part."

"You think..." Dean paused. "You think by the time he's old enough to ask for specifics... You think he'll be ready to hear them?"

Sam turned to look at him. Dean stared out the window.

"I don't know, Dean... But you've got to risk it," said Sam. "He needs you to love him. Even if he might hate you one day."

Dean nodded and took a deep breath to brace himself. He walked over to the door and put his hand on the handle. He turned it and opened the door, letting bright sunlight into the room.


	14. Chapter 14

To the tones of The Rolling Stones – Wild Horses you could see Dean step out of the motel room. Jim stopped playing and looked up at Dean. The baseball rolled down and bumped against Dean's foot. He picked it up and looked at Jim. The boy smiled, excited his dad wanted to play with him.

Dean threw the ball baseball style to his son. Jim tossed it back. Once again Dean threw it baseball style. This time Jim tried to mimic Dean's style. Dean exhaled. He was still entrusted to be his mentor.

Sam watched them through the window, smiling. After a while he went back to work on his laptop.

x

The sun was red over by the mountains, as the Impala made its way on the seemingly endless road before them. Dean was driving, listening attentively and making comments to Jim talking to him from the passenger seat.

Sam was in the backseat, holding his laptop, but watching them with a relaxed smile. He started thinking and leaned forward.

"Hey, Dean. What she said back there... That I 'don't know yet'. You don't think there's still something...in me?"

Dean looked at his brother in the rearview mirror.  
>"If you were still the Devil's bitch, don't you think Mr. Chuckles inside of <em>me<em> would've claimed more guest spots? On the up-side at least we know he'll pop his feathery ass out and help Jim when he has to."

Sam nodded slowly and thought to himself. Dean sighed.  
>"Come on, man! I can hear you giving me a headache all the way from here. We're gonna go to Bobby's and we're gonna figure this thing out. Demon-repellant, red time…whatever, yellow eyes and all," he reassured Sam.<p>

Sam nodded, glad to have his brother back. Bossy and snarky as ever, but still his big brother.

"Dean…There's just always something wrong with me..!" Sam sighed and looked out his window. Dean glanced at him in the mirror.

"I know Sammy... I figure about the only break you've got is having such an awesome big brother. Huh? Right? Come on, say it like you mean it!"

Sam laughed, shook his head and leaned back in his seat. Dean rested his head back in the driver's seat and gazed out on the road in front of him.

x

He remembered John, still sitting at that bar, and four-year-old Sam eating his fries.

Sam looked up at his father, but got no response. The boy quickly gave up, and instead turned around to his older brother, who was right there beside him. Young Dean smiled slightly and Sam shined at him, safe and reassured. Dean pulled his brother down in a headlock, but it was really more of a hug. Sam laughed and squirmed out of Dean's rough embrace, then pushed his plate with fries over for Dean to share with him. The boys downed the fries together.

x

Dean peeked in the rearview mirror and saw grown-up Sam deeply focused, reading something on his laptop. He smiled a little at the big nerd.

He reached over and joked a headlock on his son, who giggled and welcomed the hug, leaning up against his dad. Dean turned his head and looked at Alice's tape on the dashboard. Memory helped him picture her still sitting in the backseat behind him. She leaned forward and put her arms around him. He tipped his head slightly, leaning up against her head that wasn't there.

From the backseat Sam looked up from his computer and out on the road. Up ahead you could hear the thunder of dark clouds forming on the horizon.


End file.
